


our very personal stylists can help

by verity



Category: Captain America (Movies), Hawkeye (Comics), Marvel 616, Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Friendship, Gen, Retail Therapy, Undercover Missions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-10-25
Updated: 2014-10-25
Packaged: 2018-02-22 12:32:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,005
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2507933
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/verity/pseuds/verity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Seriously, you know exactly how much I just spent in your little shop," the Little Spider says when they trap her in the alley behind J. Crew. "Can you not put that bag on the ground?"</p><p>"Like I care," Hawkeye says.</p><p>The Winter Soldier carefully hooks the handles of both bags on the corner of a dumpster. "All I need to know is the name of your employer," he says very slowly in Russian. "You may live to purchase the coordinating shoes."</p>
            </blockquote>





	our very personal stylists can help

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lazulisong](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lazulisong/gifts).



> GODDAMMIT MEG

 

The shoe Hawkeye is holding in her hand is low-heeled, delicate, edged with a shallow scallop cut from the leather. It is fire-engine red. "A bold pop of color really makes your outfit come alive," she says to Yelena Belova, the Little Spider. "It's very 'in' this season."

"With capris?" The Little Spider raises an eyebrow.

Hawkeye smiles. "Give these pumps a try. You'll be amazed what they do for denim."

The Winter Soldier is not amazed. The mannequin in the window is wearing the same outfit Hawkeye has hung on the Little Spider's fitting room door, though the tags have been carefully hidden. Capris, a matching denim jacket, a light gray woolen coat. The charmeuse slacks on the second mannequin are there as well, though not the white sweater.

The Little Spider turns toward the fitting room, giving the Winter Soldier a clear line of sight. He could eliminate his target without difficulty, but he was instructed to obtain further information as part of this assignment. He pauses over the display of men's cashmere, politely refuses assistance from another sales associate, and lingers by a rack of chinos while Hawkeye exchanges the charmeuse slacks for a smaller size. Once she has completed the exchange, Hawkeye's face hardens, and she strides over toward the Winter Soldier.

"What are you doing here?" she hisses beneath her breath as the other sales associate busies herself conspicuously at the register. "I have this under control. I know what I'm doing."

"You are posing as…" The Winter Soldier lets his voice drop. "A _very_ personal stylist."

Hawkeye rolls her eyes. "I _am_ a personal stylist. I have a resume and everything."

"You picked out Barton's clothing once?" The Winter Soldier says.

From the fitting room, the Little Spider calls, "Can I try these in teal?"

—

The Winter Soldier does not work for SHIELD, because SHIELD no longer exists. Neither does he freelance. The original Black Widow is his employer. She assisted Captain America and the Falcon in tracking him for six months and captured him outside Prague, pinning him to the interior wall of a metal shipping container with magnets. "From what I understand, you're recently defrosted and have been comprehensively brainwashed," she said in clipped Russian. "Do you want me to return you to base?"

"No," the Winter Soldier said.

The Black Widow nodded. "How about years of therapy?"

The Winter Soldier shook his head.

Unexpectedly, the Black Widow smiled at him. "Yeah, me neither. Want a job?"

So far, the Winter Soldier has eliminated sleeper HYDRA cells and former operatives in five major cities, incidentally taken down a methamphetamine manufacturing center and distribution ring, and picked one sniper off the roof opposite Captain America's apartment building. The last was not an assignment, but the Black Widow paid the Winter Soldier anyway. She pays him a lot of money, more than enough to cover weeks of extended-stay hotel rooms and the liquid diet that he is accustomed to. The Winter Soldier does not ask where the money comes from, and the Black Widow does not ask why he sometimes keeps vigil on the roof of Captain America's apartment building. It is a tolerable business arrangement.

"Today's job is personal," the Black Widow said this morning. "Your target is my replacement. She tried to plant a bomb in my apartment last week; I want to know who she's working for."

"I am not trained to gather information," the Winter Soldier said.

The Black Widow shrugged. "Maybe break a kneecap if you feel like it."

—

Here is how the operation goes down:

The Winter Soldier buys a cashmere sweater. The Little Spider buys the charmeuse slacks and gray coat, as well as a gold cuff bracelet. Hawkeye goes on break. "Seriously, you know exactly how much I just spent in your little shop," the Little Spider says when they trap her in the alley behind J. Crew. "Can you not put that bag on the ground?"

"Like I care," Hawkeye says.

The Winter Soldier carefully hooks the handles of both bags on the corner of a dumpster. "All I need to know is the name of your employer," he says very slowly in Russian. "You may live to purchase the coordinating shoes."

"Are you fucking kidding me? I'm not giving her a commission," the Little Spider says in Russian.

"You can order online," says the Winter Soldier.

Hawkeye groans. "Hello, I don't speak _Soviet assassin_. HYDRA or SHIELD? Help me out here?"

"I work for no man," the Little Spider says in English. She scowls. "Try again."

"I definitely blew up Madame Masque a lot," Hawkeye says. "I'm coming up empty here."

The Winter Soldier shakes his head. "Lucia von Bardas."

The Little Spider sighs and nods. "Are we done here?"

"The Black Widow sends her regards," the Winter Soldier says, handing her back the bag. He considers the Black Widow's suggestion as the Little Spider stumbles free from Hawkeye's grasp. They are all former tools making their way in the world, and the Little Spider has just purchased unflattering slacks. That seems like enough punishment for one day.

"Ugh," Hawkeye says as the Little Spider teeters off. "I've got to get back on the floor."

"This is not an undercover operation?" the Winter Soldier says.

Hawkeye sighs. "Girl's gotta pay the bills. Also, there's a great discount."

—

Captain America stops on the threshold of his apartment to examine the package propped against the door. After a moment, he reaches down and picks it up. It is pliant in his grip, wrapped simply in plain paper with no adornment. Captain America wiggles a finger between the overlap of the paper, prises up the sealing tape, and the contents spill out into his hands, soft and sinous, pale blue. He frowns, but he keeps the garment in hand as he unlocks the front door.

On the rooftop across from Captain America's building, the Winter Soldier sets down his binoculars. There's a warm sensation in his chest, soft as a cashmere sweater.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm [ladyofthelog](http://ladyofthelog.tumblr.com) on tumblr.


End file.
